The security forces arrested 29 peaceful demonstrators in the commercial district of the capital Manama on Friday as anti-government protesters marched in the city center.
Bahrain, where the US Fifth Fleet is based, has been in political turmoil since a protest movement erupted in February 2011 demanding democratic reforms.
The demonstration was organized by the opposition group February 14, said Jasim Husain, one of the leaders of the main opposition group, Al-Wefaq.
"People should have the right to stage rallies in the capital. A rally on a Friday afternoon is not a big deal. It will not undermine the economy," said Husain.
It came two weeks after protesters and police clashed in the city centre for the first time since last year, following months of demonstrations in other parts of Manama and elsewhere in the country.
In Bahrain, the weekend falls on a Friday.
Anti-government protesters have been holding peaceful demonstrations across Bahrain since mid-February 2011, calling for an end to the Al Khalifa dynasty’s over-40-year rule, end of discrimination, establishment of justice and a democratically-elected government as well as freedom of detained protesters.
Violence against the defenseless people escalated after a Saudi-led conglomerate of police, security and military forces from the Persian Gulf Cooperation Council (PGCC) member states – Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, the United Arab Emirates, Oman and Qatar – were dispatched to the tiny Persian Gulf kingdom on March 13, 2011, to help Manama crack down on peaceful protestors.
So far, tens of people have been killed, hundreds have gone missing and thousands of others have been injured.
